According to the Law, a guardian-redeemer (go’el) had the privilege and responsibility of protecting and restoring the rights of a close relative. This included redeeming property, freeing that relative from debt or slavery, and even avenging a relative’s death. Although the verb form of the word is used over one hundred times in Scripture, the book of Ruth gives us the most vivid example.

Today’s passage begins with Ruth threshing the barley she had gleaned (v. 17). Verse 17 emphasizes the amount of grain Ruth had procured—“about an ephah”—enough food for Naomi and Ruth to eat for an entire week. The overwhelming generosity (hesed) of Boaz was demonstrated once again.

Naomi was surprised when Ruth appeared with the ephah of barley and her leftovers from lunch. “Where did you glean today?” she asked (v. 19). But actually, she was more interested in “the man who took notice of [Ruth].” So, Ruth told Naomi about her incredible day, finishing with the man’s name—Boaz. Naomi recognized this name immediately and burst into praise. She pronounced the Lord’s blessing on Boaz. Then she proclaimed: “He has not stopped showing his kindness to the living and the dead” (v. 20). In the Hebrew, the grammatical structure is ambiguous. Was Naomi speaking of the Lord’s kindness or Boaz’s? Perhaps both. Naomi then shared the most important information. This man was a guardian-redeemer (go’el). Boaz had already redeemed Naomi and Ruth from hunger. But this new revelation adds another layer of suspense. What more is to come?

Ruth continued to glean in the field of Boaz about seven more weeks and still “lived with her mother-in-law” (v. 23). Her relationship with Boaz had not yet progressed.

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